U.S. patent application number 14/023808 was filed with the patent office on 2014-10-23 for posture guided design of deformable objects.
This patent application is currently assigned to ETH Zurich. The applicant listed for this patent is Disney Enterprises, Inc., ETH Zurich. Invention is credited to Bernd Bickel, Stelian Coros, Markus Gross, Melina Skouras, Bernhard Thomaszewski.
Application Number | 20140316748 14/023808 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 51729669 |
Filed Date | 2014-10-23 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140316748 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Bickel; Bernd ; et
al. |
October 23, 2014 |
Posture Guided Design Of Deformable Objects
Abstract
There is provided a posture guided design system and a method
for use in producing a posture guided design of a deformable
object. In one implementation, such a method includes identifying a
target posture for the deformable object, and determining locations
of actuators for producing the target posture. The method also
includes modeling the deformable object using at least one material
so as to enable the deformable object to substantially reproduce
the target posture. In some implementations, the method includes
modeling the deformable object using at least two materials,
wherein a distribution of the at least two materials is determined
so as to enable the deformable object to substantially reproduce
the target posture.
Inventors: |
Bickel; Bernd; (Zurich,
CH) ; Skouras; Melina; (Zurich, CH) ;
Thomaszewski; Bernhard; (Zurich, CH) ; Coros;
Stelian; (Zurich, CH) ; Gross; Markus;
(Zurich, CH) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
ETH Zurich
Disney Enterprises, Inc. |
Zurich
Burbank |
CA |
CH
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
ETH Zurich
Zurich
CA
Disney Enterprises, Inc.
Burbank
|
Family ID: |
51729669 |
Appl. No.: |
14/023808 |
Filed: |
September 11, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61815174 |
Apr 23, 2013 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
703/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 30/00 20200101 |
Class at
Publication: |
703/1 |
International
Class: |
G06F 17/50 20060101
G06F017/50 |
Claims
1. A method for use by a design system to produce a posture guided
design of a deformable object, the method comprising: identifying a
target posture for the deformable object; determining a location of
each of a plurality of actuators for producing the target posture;
modeling the deformable object using at least one material so as to
enable the deformable object to substantially reproduce the target
posture.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing an actuator
database including the plurality of actuators.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of actuators
comprise at least one of pin actuators and string actuators.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a materials
database including the at least one material.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein modeling the deformable object
includes using at least two materials, and wherein a distribution
of the at least two materials is determined so as to enable the
deformable object to substantially reproduce the target
posture.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein at least one of the at least two
materials comprises an easily deformable material and another at
least one of the at least two materials comprises a deformation
resistant material.
7. A method for use by a design system to produce a posture guided
design of a deformable object, the method comprising: identifying a
target posture for the deformable object; modeling the deformable
object using at least two materials, wherein a distribution of the
at least two materials is determined so as to enable the deformable
object to substantially reproduce the target posture.
8. The method of claim 7, further comprising providing a materials
database including the at least two materials.
9. The method of claim 7, wherein at least one of the at least two
materials comprises an easily deformable material and another at
least one of the at least two materials comprises a deformation
resistant material.
10. The method of claim 7, further comprising determining a
location of each of a plurality of actuators for producing the
target posture.
11. The method of claim 10, further comprising providing an
actuator database including the plurality of actuators.
12. The method of claim 10, wherein the plurality of actuators
comprise at least one of pin actuators and string actuators.
13. A design system configured to produce a posture guided design
of a deformable object, the design system comprising: a system
processor and a system memory; a posture guided design engine
stored in the system memory, the posture guided design engine,
under control of the system processor, configured to: identify a
target posture for the deformable object; determine a location of
each of a plurality of actuators for producing the target posture;
model the deformable object using at least one material so as to
enable the deformable object to substantially reproduce the target
posture.
14. The design system of claim 13, further comprising an actuator
database including the plurality of actuators.
15. The design system of claim 13, wherein the plurality of
actuators comprise at least one of pin actuators and string
actuators.
16. The design system of claim 13, further comprising a materials
database including the at least one material.
17. The design system of claim 13, wherein the posture guided
design engine is further configured to model the deformable object
using at least two materials, wherein a distribution of the at
least two materials is determined by the posture guided design
engine so as to enable the deformable object to substantially
reproduce the target posture.
18. The design system of claim 17, wherein at least one of the at
least two materials comprises an easily deformable material and
another at least one of the at least two materials comprises a
deformation resistant material.
19. The design system of claim 13, further comprising a fabrication
system for fabricating the deformable object based on the posture
guided design.
20. The design system of claim 13, further comprising a
three-dimensional (3D) printer for fabricating the deformable
object based on the posture guided design.
Description
[0001] The present application claims the benefit of and priority
to a pending provisional application entitled "Computational Design
of Actuated Deformable Characters," Ser. No. 61/815,174 filed on
Apr. 23, 2013. The disclosure in this pending provisional
application is hereby incorporated fully by reference into the
present application.
BACKGROUND
Background Art
[0002] Computer generated virtual characters having rich visual
features and capable of a wide range of complex movements play an
increasingly important role in the production of entertainment
content. Some of these virtual characters may be rigidly
articulated, while others are capable of substantial deformation.
Still others display both properties to some degree, ranging for
example from humanoid virtual characters having exaggerated
physical features to fantastic monsters and background features
like virtual plants or virtual depictions of man-made objects.
[0003] As the role of virtual characters grows in importance, so
does their popularity with the consumers of entertainment content.
As a result, it is sometimes desirable to replicate virtual
characters as physical objects, such as mechanical or deformable
objects, for example. Although significant efforts have been
directed to the design and production of mechanical characters,
such as animatronic characters for example, relatively little
progress has been made in the design and production of deformable
characters. Moreover, conventional approaches to creating
deformable objects typically require the participation of expert
designers and engineers, and remain largely processes of trial and
error, often requiring many iterations to produce an acceptable
product. One unfortunate result of the costs associated with such
an expertise intensive iterative design approach is that public
access to and enjoyment of deformable objects such as deformable
characters may be undesirably limited.
SUMMARY
[0004] There are provided systems and methods for performing
posture guided design of deformable objects, substantially as shown
in and/or described in connection with at least one of the figures,
and as set forth more completely in the claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] FIG. 1 shows a diagram of an exemplary design system
configured to produce a posture guided design of a deformable
object, according to one implementation;
[0006] FIG. 2 shows another exemplary implementation of a design
system configured to produce a posture guided design of a
deformable object;
[0007] FIG. 3 shows an exemplary design terminal and a
computer-readable medium including instructions enabling production
of a posture guided design of a deformable object, according to one
implementation;
[0008] FIG. 4 is a flowchart presenting an exemplary method for use
by a design system to produce a posture guided design of a
deformable object; and
[0009] FIG. 5 shows an exemplary representation of a deformable
object at various stages of a posture guided design process,
according to one implementation.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0010] The following description contains specific information
pertaining to implementations in the present disclosure. One
skilled in the art will recognize that the present disclosure may
be implemented in a manner different from that specifically
discussed herein. The drawings in the present application and their
accompanying detailed description are directed to merely exemplary
implementations. Unless noted otherwise, like or corresponding
elements among the figures may be indicated by like or
corresponding reference numerals. Moreover, the drawings and
illustrations in the present application are generally not to
scale, and are not intended to correspond to actual relative
dimensions.
[0011] As explained above, conventional approaches to creating
deformable objects typically require the participation of expert
designers and engineers, and remain largely processes of trial and
error, often requiring many iterations to produce an acceptable
product. As further noted above, one unfortunate result of the
costs associated with conventional approaches to designing
deformable objects is that public access to and enjoyment of those
deformable objects, such as deformable characters, may be
undesirably limited. The present application discloses an improved
design solution that adopts a posture guided computational design
approach for producing deformable objects capable of relatively
complex and sophisticated movements or poses. Moreover, some
implementations of the present solution may enable a substantially
non-expert user, such as a lay person or consumer, to design
deformable objects capable of assuming a wide range of
postures.
[0012] As used in the present application, the expression
"deformable object" can refer to any physical object configured to
assume one or more predetermined postures or poses. In some
implementations, a deformable object may take the form of a
deformable character representative of an animated being, such as a
humanoid character, an animal character, or a fantasy life form
character, for example. In other implementations, a deformable
object may correspond to an inanimate object, such as a building or
candelabra, for example. In yet other implementations, a deformable
object may correspond to a hybrid character having both animated
and inanimate features.
[0013] As noted above, the present posture guided design solution
may be utilized by non-expert users as well as expert designers and
engineers. When utilized by expert designers and engineers, for
example, the present posture guided design solution may be used to
produce large, complex, deformable objects including deformable
characters encountered in a theme park or other recreational or
entertainment venue. When utilized by non-expert users, such as a
theme park visitor or other type of consumer, for example, the
present posture guided design solution may be used to produce
smaller deformable objects, such as consumer products or
commemorative items that the non-expert user may purchase or
otherwise acquire. Examples of consumer products provided by
deformable objects include action figures and puppets.
[0014] FIG. 1 shows a diagram of a design system configured to
produce a posture guided design of a deformable object, according
to one implementation. As shown in FIG. 1, design environment 100
includes design system 102, communications network 105, fabrication
system 122, which may be a multi-material fabrication system for
example, design terminal 132, and consumer or user 142 utilizing
design terminal 132 (hereinafter "designer 142"). As further shown
in FIG. 1, design system 102 includes design system processor 104,
and design system memory 106 storing actuator database 116,
materials database, and posture guided design engine 112. Also
shown in FIG. 1 are network communication links 107 interactively
connecting design terminal 132, fabrication system 122, and design
system 102 via communications network 105.
[0015] It is noted that although FIG. 1 depicts actuator database
116, materials database, and posture guided design engine 112 as
being mutually co-located in design system memory 106, that
representation is merely provided as an aid to conceptual clarity.
More generally, design system 102 may include one or more design
servers, which may be co-located, or may form an interactively
linked but distributed system. As a result, design system processor
104 and design system memory 106 may correspond to distributed
processor and memory resources within design system 102. Thus, it
is to be understood that actuator database 116, materials database
118, and posture guided design engine 112 may be stored remotely
from on another within the distributed memory resources of design
system 102, which may be a cloud based system, for example.
[0016] It is further noted that in some implementations, design
system 102 may not include actuator database 116 and/or materials
database 118. In those implementations, actuator database 116
and/or materials database 118 may be external resources for design
system 102, such as third party resources, for example, accessible
over communications network 105. Moreover, in some implementations,
design system 102 may include fabrication system 122, which may
include a single-material or multi-material three-dimensional (3D)
printer, for example, configured to fabricate a deformable object
based on a posture guided design produced by posture guided design
engine 112.
[0017] According to the implementation shown by FIG. 1, designer
142 may utilize design terminal 132 to interact with posture guided
design engine 112 of design system 102, over communications network
105. In one such implementation, design system 102 may correspond
to one or more web servers, accessible over a packet network such
as the Internet, for example. Alternatively, design system 102 may
correspond to one or more design servers supporting a local area
network (LAN), or included in another type of limited distribution
network.
[0018] Although design terminal 132 is shown as a personal computer
(PC) in FIG. 1, that representation is also provided merely as an
example. In other implementations, design terminal 132 may be
another type of mobile or stationary computing device or system.
For example, design terminal 132 may take the form of a design
kiosk in a theme park environment, or may be implemented as a
tablet computer, or a mobile communication device such as a
smartphone, for example.
[0019] As shown in FIG. 1, posture guided design engine 112, under
the control of design system processor 104, may receive one or more
inputs from designer 142 over communications network 105. For
example, and as will be described in greater detail below, posture
guided design engine 112 may receive inputs enabling identification
of a deformable object and/or one or more target postures of the
deformable object.
[0020] Posture guided design engine 112 may be configured to
determine locations of actuators for producing the target postures,
the actuators being stored in actuator database 116. In addition,
or alternatively, posture guided design engine 112 may be
configured to utilize materials database 118 to model the
deformable object using one, or two or more materials, so as to
enable the deformable object to substantially reproduce the target
posture or postures. For example, posture guided design engine 112
may model the deformable object using two or more materials of
which one or more may be relatively easily deformable and one or
more may be relatively deformation resistant. When two or more
materials are utilized to model the deformable object, posture
guided design engine 112 may be further configured to determine a
distribution of the two or more materials so as to enable the
deformable object to substantially reproduce the target posture or
postures. When a satisfactory posture guided design of the
deformable object is produced, design system 102 may send the
posture guided design to fabrication system 122 for fabrication of
the deformable object.
[0021] Referring to FIG. 2, FIG. 2 shows another exemplary
implementation of a design system configured to produce a posture
guided design of a deformable object. Design environment 200
includes design system 202 in communication with fabrication system
222 over network communication link 207. Design system 202 is shown
to include design system processor 204, and design system memory
206 storing actuator database 216, materials database 218, and
posture guided design engine 212. Also shown in FIG. 2 are posture
guided design 214a produced by posture guided design engine 212 and
residing in design system memory 206.
[0022] Design system 202 including design system processor 204 and
design system memory 206 corresponds to design system 102 including
design system processor 104 and design system memory 106, in FIG.
1. Moreover, actuator database 216, materials database 218, and
posture guided design engine 212 producing posture guided design
214a, in FIG. 2, correspond respectively to actuator database 116,
materials database 118, and posture guided design engine 112, in
FIG. 1.
[0023] In addition, fabrication system 222 and network
communication link 207, in FIG. 2, correspond respectively to
fabrication system 122 and any of network communications links 107,
in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, fabrication system 222, which may
include a single-material or multi-material 3D printer, for
example, includes fabrication system processor 224 and fabrication
system memory 226. FIG. 2 also shows posture guided design 214b in
fabrication system memory 226. According to the implementation
shown in FIG. 2, the presence of posture guided design 214b in
fabrication system memory 226 corresponds to its transmission to
fabrication system 222 from design system 202 over network
communication link 207. It is noted that network communication link
207 is shown as a two-way communication link to represent possible
ongoing communication between fabrication system 222 and design
system 202.
[0024] Fabrication system processor 224 may be the central
processing unit for fabrication system 222, for example, in which
role fabrication system processor 224 controls the operation of
fabrication system 222. Fabrication system processor 224 may
further manage use of posture guided design 214b to fabricate the
deformable object corresponding to posture guided design 214b. As
noted above, in some implementations, fabrication system 222 may be
included as a feature of design system 202.
[0025] Moving now to FIG. 3, FIG. 3 shows an exemplary design
terminal and a computer-readable medium including instructions
enabling production of a posture guided design of a deformable
object, according to one implementation. Design terminal 332, in
FIG. 3, includes computer 338 including processor 334 and memory
336, interactively linked to display 339. Also shown in FIG. 3 is
computer-readable medium 311 having actuator database 316,
materials database 318, and posture guided design engine
instructions 313 stored thereon. Design terminal 332 corresponds to
design terminal 132, in FIG. 1.
[0026] The expression "computer-readable medium," as used in the
present application, to refers to any non-transitory medium that
provides instructions to processor 334 of computer 338. Thus, a
computer-readable medium may correspond to various types of
non-transitory media, such as volatile media and non-volatile
media, for example. Volatile media may include dynamic memory, such
as dynamic random access memory (dynamic RAM), while non-volatile
memory may include optical, magnetic, or electrostatic storage
devices. Common forms of non-transitory computer-readable media
include, for example, an optical disc, RAM, programmable read-only
memory (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), and FLASH memory.
[0027] According to the implementation shown by FIG. 3,
computer-readable medium 311 provides posture guided design engine
instructions 313 for execution by processor 334. Posture guided
design engine instructions 313, when executed by processor 334,
instantiate a posture guided design engine on design terminal 332
corresponding to posture guided design engine 112, in FIG. 1, and
capable of performing all of the operations attributed to posture
guided design engine 112 herein. It is noted that although FIG. 3
shows computer-readable medium 311 as including actuator database
316 and materials database 318, that depiction is merely by way of
an example. In other implementations, actuator database 316 and/or
materials database 318 may not be present on computer-readable
medium 311, but may be accessible to design terminal 332 over a
communications network corresponding to communications network 105,
in FIG. 1.
[0028] The present inventive concepts will now be further described
with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG. 4 shows a flowchart
presenting an exemplary method for use by a design system to
produce a posture guided design of a deformable object, while FIG.
5 shows an exemplary representation of a deformable object at
various stages of the design process. FIG. 5 shows deformable
object 511, depicted as a whimsical animated palm tree, and one or
more target postures 513 for deformable object 511. In addition,
FIG. 5 shows actuators 515, 517, and 519, and actuator locations
525, 527, and 529 after determination of actuator locations that
have been substantially optimized to produce target postures 513.
Also shown in FIG. 5 are first and second materials 542 and 544
used to model deformable object 511. With respect to the method
outlined in FIG. 4, it is noted that certain details and features
have been left out of flowchart 400 in order not to obscure the
discussion of the inventive features in the present
application.
[0029] Referring to FIG. 4 in combination with FIGS. 1 and 5,
flowchart 400 begins with identifying a target posture or postures
513 for deformable object 511 (410). As shown by frame 510 in FIG.
5, target postures 513 require deformation of the trunk, limbs, and
crown of deformable object 511. According to the design system
implementation shown in FIG. 1, target postures 513 can be
identified by posture guided design engine 112 of design system 102
based on one or more inputs received by design system 102 over
communications network 105. For example, designer 142, who may be a
consumer or other novice or non-expert user, may utilize design
terminal 132 to provide design inputs to design system 102 enabling
posture guided design engine 112 to identify one or more target
postures 513. Examples of design inputs received by posture guided
design engine 112 may include selection or exemplars of deformable
object 511 and/or selection or exemplars of one or more target
postures 513.
[0030] In some implementations, posture guided design engine 112
may be configured to identify deformable object 511, as well as to
identify target posture or postures 513. In those implementations,
posture guided design engine may identify deformable object 511 in
response to a selection, by designer 142, of deformable object 511
from a catalogue or library of predetermined deformable objects
viewable and selectable by designer 142 using design terminal 132.
In addition, or alternatively, in some implementations, designer
142 may provide an input exemplar corresponding to a 2D figure or
3D model of deformable object 511 produced by or for designer 142.
In those latter implementations, posture guided design engine 112
may be configured to generate data for instantiating deformable
object 511 based on the 2D figure or 3D model provided by designer
142.
[0031] Posture guided design engine 112 may also be configured to
identify one or more target postures 513 based on a selection, by
designer 142, of one or more target postures 513 from a catalogue
or library of predetermined postures viewable and selectable by
designer 142. Moreover, in some implementations, designer 142 may
provide exemplars of target posture or postures 513 as one or more
inputs to posture guided design engine 112, using design terminal
132 and communications network 105.
[0032] Flowchart 400 continues with determining locations 525, 527,
and 529 of actuators 515, 517, and 519 for producing target posture
or postures 513 (420). As shown by frame 520a deformable object 511
may be deformed, or posed, to assume a posture corresponding to
target posture or postures 513 using actuators 515, 517, and 519.
Actuators 515, 517, and 519 may be any suitable mechanisms for
deforming or posing deformable object 511, such as pins, rods, or
strings, for example. As shown in frame 520a, for instance,
actuators 515, 517, and 519 may be pin or pressure actuators for
exerting respective forces at locations on the surface of
deformable object 511 so as to cause deformable object 511 to be
deformed. As another specific example, actuators 515, 517, and 519
may be implemented as string actuators configured to attach to
locations on the surface of deformable object 511 and to cause
deformation of deformable object 511 by pulling on deformable
object 511. It is noted that in some implementations, actuators
515, 517, and 519 may include different types of actuators in
combination.
[0033] Actuators 515, 517, and 519 may be stored in actuator
database 116, and may be selected from actuator database 116 and
have their initial placement on deformable object 511 performed by
posture guided design engine 112. In some implementations,
actuators 515, 517, and 519 may be selected and have their initial
placement specified based on inputs received by posture guided
design engine 112 from designer 142. However, in other
implementations, particularly those seeking to enable posture
guided design by novice users, or in instances when deformable
object 511 has a more amorphous shape lacking a well defined
articulation structure, actuators 515, 517, and 519 may be selected
and initially placed automatically by posture guided design engine
112. Moreover, in some implementations, the present method may
include providing actuator database 116 as part of design system
102.
[0034] As shown by frame 520b in FIG. 5, locations 525, 527, and
529 of respective actuators 515, 517, and 519 may be determined so
as to be substantially optimized for producing target posture or
postures 513. Determination and substantial optimization of
locations 525, 527, and 529 may be performed by posture guided
design engine 112 computationally, using a continuous optimization
process, for example. In addition, in some implementations, a
continuous optimization process may be utilized to substantially
minimize the number of actuators 515, 517, and 519 used to produce
target posture or postures 513. That is to say, posture guided
design engine 112 may be configured to substantially minimize the
number of actuators 515, 517, 519 used to produce target posture or
postures 513, and/or to determine substantially optimized locations
525, 527, and 529 for producing target posture or postures 513
using actuators 515, 517, and 519.
[0035] Flowchart 400 continues with modeling deformable object 511
using at least one material so as to substantially reproduce the
target posture (430). Deformable object 511 may be modeled using
two or more materials, for example, including one or more
relatively easily deformable material and one or more relatively
deformation resistant material, by posture guided design engine 112
using materials database 118. Alternatively, deformable object 511
can be modeled using a combination of relatively easily deformable
materials, or using a combination of relatively deformation
resistant materials. The relatively easily deformable material
and/or the relatively deformation resistant material may be
selected from materials database 118 by posture guided design
engine 112 from among a variety of materials including silicone and
printable plastics, for example.
[0036] In implementations in which two or more materials are used
to model deformable object 511, flowchart 400 may conclude with
determining a distribution of the relatively easily deformable
material and the relatively deformation resistant material so as to
enable deformable object 511 to substantially reproduce target
posture or postures 513 (440). Referring to frame 540, in FIG. 5,
frame 540 shows a distribution of first material 542, which may be
a relatively easily deformable material, and second material 544,
which may be a relatively deformation resistant material, as well
as the substantial reproduction of visible target posture 513 by
deformable object 511.
[0037] Determination of a material distribution enabling
reproduction of target posture 513, effectively a substantially
optimized material distribution, results in production of a posture
guided design of deformable object 511, corresponding to posture
guided design 214a, in FIG. 2. Determination of such a
substantially optimized material distribution may be performed by
posture guided design engine 112 computationally, using a
continuous optimization process, for example. In some
implementations, the computational process used by posture guided
design engine 112 to substantially optimize the material
distribution may be performed on an initially random distribution
of first material 542 and second material 544 in deformable object
511.
[0038] It is noted that although the present exemplary method
distinguishes between two or more materials used to model
deformable object 511 in terms of their deformation
characteristics, in other implementations, other distinctions
between the materials selected for modeling of deformable object
511 may be used. Thus, more generally, the present approach may
utilize materials, for example a first material and a second
material, having different material properties. It is further noted
that in some implementations, the present method may include
providing materials database 118 including the material(s) used to
model deformable object 511, e.g., the relatively easily deformable
material and/or the relatively deformation resistant material.
[0039] It is further noted that although the method of flowchart
400 includes determining locations of actuators for producing the
target posture (420) and determining a substantially optimized
distribution of materials for reproducing the target posture (440),
that combination is merely exemplary. For example, in some
implementations, a method for use by a design system to produce a
posture guided design of a deformable object may include
determining locations of actuators for producing the target posture
(420), but conclude with modeling the deformable object using one
or more materials to substantially reproduce the target posture
(430) without optimizing or otherwise determining material
distribution. In other implementations, the locations of the
actuators may be given or otherwise predetermined such that
determination of the actuator locations (420) need not be
performed, but the method may use multiple materials and include
determination of a distribution of the materials for substantially
reproducing the target posture (440).
[0040] Moreover, although not shown by flowchart 400, some
implementations of the present method may include sending posture
guided design 214a of deformable object 511 to fabrication system
222/122 for fabrication. As shown by FIG. 2, posture guided design
214a may be produced by posture guided design engine 212, and may
be sent or transmitted to fabrication system 222 over communication
link 207, to reside in memory 226 of fabrication system 222 as
posture guided design 214b. However, as noted above, in some
implementations, design system 102/202 may include fabrication
system 122/222. In those implementations, the method outlined by
flowchart 400 may further include fabricating deformable object 511
using posture guided design 214b, as shown by frame 550 in FIG. 5.
For example, deformable object 511 may be 3D printed using a
multi-material 3D printer implemented as part of fabrication system
122/222.
[0041] Thus, the present application discloses an improved design
solution that adopts a posture guided design approach to design
deformable objects capable of movement through transitions from one
target posture to another. As described above, the present solution
may be substantially automated through use of a posture guided
design engine.
[0042] As a result, some implementations advantageously enable a
non-expert user, such as a lay person or consumer, to design
deformable objects capable of a wide range of movements.
[0043] From the above description it is manifest that various
techniques can be used for implementing the concepts described in
the present application without departing from the scope of those
concepts. Moreover, while the concepts have been described with
specific reference to certain implementations, a person of ordinary
skill in the art would recognize that changes can be made in form
and detail without departing from the scope of those concepts. As
such, the described implementations are to be considered in all
respects as illustrative and not restrictive. It should also be
understood that the present application is not limited to the
particular implementations described herein, but many
rearrangements, modifications, and substitutions are possible
without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.
* * * * *